Fraxinus pennsylvanica Marshall
Green ash, red ash, downy ash, swamp ash, water ash
Green ash is native to eastern and central North America.
Plants: 39–82′ (12–25 m) tall, with a trunk up to 2′ (60 cm) in diameter. Smooth gray bark in young trees gives way to fissured bark in older trees.
Leaves: Opposite, 1–2½′ (38–76 cm) long. Each leaf is odd pinnate, comprised of 5-9 leaflets. Each leaflet is 1¾–6″ long ⨉ ⅜–3½″ wide (5–15 ⨉ 1.2–9 cm). Leaves are dark green both above and below. They turn yellow in the fall.
Flowers: Inconspicuous purplish flower panicles appear on leaf tips. Each flower lacks petals. They appear from April to May, after the foliage.
Fruits: Dense, drooping clusters of samaras. Each samara is 1–3″ long ⨉ ¼–5/16″ wide (2.5–7.6 cm ⨉ 6.3–8.5 mm), light green, and contains a single seed.
Habitats: Bottomlands, floodplains, riverbanks, wetlands..
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Similar species. |
Online References:
References:
9/5/2025 · Off Rte 24, Gardiner, Maine · ≈ 14 × 11″ (35 × 27 cm) 
6/13/2011 · Great Falls State Park, Washington, DC · ≈ 6 × 9″ (15 × 23 cm) 
9/5/2025 · Off Rte 24, Gardiner, Maine · ≈ 14 × 10″ (36 × 24 cm) 
6/12/2023 · Viles Arboretum, Augusta, Maine 
6/12/2023 · Viles Arboretum, Augusta, Maine 
6/13/2011 · Great Falls State Park, Washington, DC · ≈ 6 × 9″ (14 × 22 cm) 
6/12/2023 · Viles Arboretum, Augusta, Maine 
9/5/2025 · Off Rte 24, Gardiner, Maine · ≈ 16 × 11″ (40 × 27 cm) 
9/5/2025 · Off Rte 24, Gardiner, Maine · ≈ 2 × 1½′ (65 × 43 cm) 
6/13/2011 · Great Falls State Park, Washington · ≈ 9 × 12″ (23 × 30 cm) 
6/13/2011 · Great Falls State Park, Washington, DC · ≈ 7 × 11″ (18 × 27 cm) 
9/5/2025 · Off Rte 24, Gardiner, Maine · ≈ 16 × 11″ (41 × 27 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Asteridae | A large class that encompasses asters |
| Order | Lamiales | Aromatic herbs and shrubs, including lavender, lilac, olive, jasmine, ash, teak, snapdragon, sesame, psyllium, garden sage, mint, basil, and rosemary |
| Family | Oleaceae | Temperate climate shrubs, trees and a few vines, include forsythia, ash, jasmine, privet, olive, lilac, and many others |
| Genus | Fraxinus | The classical Latin name for ash |
| Species | pennsylvanica | “Of or from Pennsylvania” |
Fraxinus pennsylvanica description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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